Cartagena Cruise Excursion

Cartagena hides lots of wonderful stories, and leyends ,throughout history there have been many characters of legend, and today we want to introduce you one of the most unknown that our Cartagena tour guides explains during our city tours.

There is a 13th century medieval castle at the top of the city centre of Cartagena, the Conception Castle, situated on one of the five hills where the Roman city of Carhago-nova was founded. Furthermore, the Greek writer Polibio wrote that, in the same place, there was a roman temple dedicated to the recovery God Esculapio, in the 3rdcentury BC. This ancient castle is the scene of a legend about a young and beautiful girl called Lady Sol that lived in the Conception Castle. Lady Sol fell in love with a man called Mr Mendo, yet her parents did not approve of this love, because he lacked legacy. So Mr Mendo went to war to obtain said public recognition.

Two years later nobody had heard anything about MrMendo, so Lady Sol’s parents arranged hermarriagewith a rich Italian mancalled Rodrigo Rocatti. But he was a horrible man who she would hate forever.

One day a mysteryman arrived at the Conception Castle. He toldher he had been a prisoner in a Moorish Galley and with him there was another prisoner from Cartagena… a citizen of Cartagena… Mr Mendo. She was extremely happy with this announcement,for her beloved was still alive! So Lady Sol tried to talk with the Galley’s Captain, to whom she would deliver someblueprints of the Conception Castle in exchange for the release of Mr Mendo.

But a castle servant betrayed her and told Rodrigo everything. He was very angry with the incident, so he accused Lady Sol of being unfaithful and the next day she wascondemned to die confined in a room. That night she asked to make her confession accompanied by a monk. When the monk appeared, Lady Sol realized that the strange monk was Mr Mendo. He had passed himself off as a monk called Fray Juan. He went to Rodrigo demanding clemency, but Rodrigo realized Mr Mendo´sidentity and he and two slaves killed him.

The next day, while he was confining Lady Sol, Rodrigo told her that he and the slaves had killed Mr Mendo. She, angry and sad, said to him: “I have not been unfaithful. MrMendo’s blood will get dirty in your head and in 20 days you will die”. He finished confining Lady Sol and he went back to his life…

20 days later, Rodrigo died without any reason…

This is the sad story about Lady Sol, the sad story about how women were confined in the Conception Castle. At present, people say that they have heardthe sobbing of a girl in the Conception Castle, while other people have seen a dark mistsoaking through the stone walls of the castle…

So on your next Cartagena cruise excursion, do not hesitate in visiting the castle…. Maybe Doña Sol.. will be the perfect guide… or maybe you will let us guide you in one of our Cartagena city tours.